


Angel & Devil

by AzeAngelicOne



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-27
Updated: 2018-12-19
Packaged: 2019-08-08 05:25:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16423256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AzeAngelicOne/pseuds/AzeAngelicOne
Summary: A alternate version of the final arc, which goes into the past of Zarc and Ray, and tries to explain their characters better than the show ended up doing.





	1. Episode 140, a different tale

The demon, Zarc could not believe what he was seeing. Staring down the young Akaba child, Reira, who, while they had a completely different appearance, the Demon Duelist knew exactly who he was dealing with. After all, they were the only person to have ever defeated him in a duel.

Ray Akaba.

“Ray…” Zarc said, completely taken aback by her appearance.

“Even if you come back, I’ll come back as well. If you try to destroy the world, I’ll always protect it!” Reira said, Ray’s spirit appearing next to the child. ‘Ray’ put her fingers on her deck, saying, “It’s my… turn!” ‘Ray’ drew her card. “I activate the Spell Card, Transmigration Life Force! With this, I’ll send my entire hand to the graveyard, and from the Graveyard, I set En Flowers, Moon, Winds, and Birds!” The 4 ‘En’ Cards appeared one after another, setting themselves on the field.

Leo, both happy to see his daughter, and seeing the 4 ‘En’ cards set, said, “This is it! The activation conditions have been met!”

“You rotten wench!” Zarc yelled out, in a combination of anger and frustration.

“I activate the continuous Spell Card, En Flowers!” ‘Ray’ declared, her Spell Card flipping up, making the planted field sprout flowers.

“If there are at least 3 Xyz monsters on my field when activating En Flowers, I can activate the Continuous Spell Card, En Birds!” the Spell Card flipped up and many glowing birds came out of the card, wrapping themselves around Dragon Zarc and Dark Rebellion. “All Xyz monsters on the field are banished, and turned into Normal Monsters with their effects negated.” ‘Ray’ explained, Dark Rebellion and Zarc turning into Normal Monsters, Zarc losing his ‘Xyz’ shade.

“Xyz Monsters are…” Kaito began.

“…Turned into Normal Monsters?” Shun finished.

“If there at least 5 Synchro Monsters in the Graveyard when I activate En Birds, I can activate the Continuous Spell Card, En Winds!” the facedown card flipped up, emitting a large burst of green light, which turned into wind, surrounding Dragon Zarc and his servants. “All Synchro monsters are turned into Normal Monsters with their effects negated!” Dragon Zarc let out a huge roar at this, as he lost his Synchro side, as did Clear Wing.

“The Supreme Dragon King is slowly losing his power!” Jack remarked, as Crow and Sawatari looked on, smiling.

“If there are at least 3 Fusion Monsters in the Graveyard when I activate both En Birds and Winds, I can activate the Continuous Spell Card, En Moon!” ‘Ray’ declared, as the red clouds moved out of the sky, as the full moon was revealed. “All Fusion Monsters become Normal Monsters, and all their effects are negated!” Zarc let out one more roar, as his effect disappeared.

Zarc, bewildered by how Ray could power down his Dragon so easily, could only bring himself to say, “DAMN YOU!!”

“This is the end, Zarc!” ‘Ray’ declared, before raising her hand to the sky, and beams of light surrounded the ‘En’ cards, all of which corresponded with its respective card color. “With En Flowers, all monsters on the field with their effects negated are destroyed. And for every card destroyed, that duelist takes 600 points of damage!” Dragon Zarc let out a wail of agony, as he felt himself slowly slipping away.

“With this…” Reiji said, realizing what this meant.

‘Ray’, her right arm in the air, struck a pose, and the 4 Bracelets appeared on her arm. Each one started to glow their respective color, and one by one, the Servant Dragons were destroyed, and eventually, the Supreme Dragon King, himself, was destroyed, but not before Zarc could say, “DAMN IT ALL!!”

When the dust finally settled, Zarc was kneeling on the ground, weakened.

**Zarc LP: 2800 → 1000  
Hand: 1**

“Why…” Zarc muttered, clutching his face. “I kept getting stronger and stronger all the time… and still…” Zarc clenched his fist, before yelling, “WHY CAN’T I DEFEAT YOU?!”

‘Ray’ walked up to Zarc, saying, “Please, surrender, Zarc. I don’t want to hurt you anymore. Please…”

Zarc looked at the Akaba girl with nothing but distain and digust. “How dare you… You should feel HONORED! You are in the presence of one of, if not, the greatest duelist of all time, and YOU are showing PITY? To ME?!” Zarc bellowed, standing to his feet. “I’m not naïve. You think I would be confined in that prison you put me in for 14 years, and not expect me fall by the same old tricks?” the Demon Duelist began to chuckle, which turned into an evil laugh. “You’re so predictable.” Everyone watched intently, as Zarc drew his final card.

Zarc smiled at the card that he drew. “I activate the Spell Card, **Revenge of the Supreme King.** ” Everyone in the area gasped, with Reiji saying, “Revenge…?”

“When this card is activated, I can banish all Spell and Trap cards on my opponent’s side of the field, and I get to Special Summon 1 face-up monster from my Extra Deck!” Zarc explained, as the ‘En’ cards all got destroyed.

“The Natural Energy Cards!” Leo exclaimed, in shock.

Zarc picked up one card from his extra deck, and smirked. “Return to the field, Supreme Dragon King, Zarc!” The Supreme Dragon towered over the Akaba child, letting out a huge roar as he was summoned.

Supreme Dragon King Zarc  
ATK: 4000  
LEVEL: 12

“Impossible! Ray went through all that trouble just to get rid of it, but Zarc still found a way?!” Reiji exclaimed.

“No… I thought… That this would be it…” ‘Ray’ said, bewildered at this revelation.

Zarc chuckled, closing his eyes, reminiscing to his days in the Original Dimension. “With this victory… I can finally claim it.” The Demon Duelist opened his eyes, glowing an intense yellow, and in narrow slits. “Go, Supreme Dragon King! Attack Ray directly!” The Dragon charged a large beam of energy in its mouth, before launching it at ‘Ray’.

_“No… How could this be?”_ Ray thought. _“Zarc… I thought I could save you… but in the end… NO! There’s still one more shot that I have to take… I just hope it works.”_

The blast hit ‘Ray’ head on, as the Akaba child let out a painful wail of agony. As if the entire world went silent, as the child’s head bounced off the concrete, as Reira’s body went limp.

**Ray/Reira LP: 2000 → 0 - WIN  
**

**Zarc LP: 1000**

“RAY!”/”REIRA!” Everyone shouted, as they rushed over to the Akaba child, who lay lifeless on the ground. “Reira! Say something! Wake up, Reira!” Reiji pleaded, as the light from the Akaba child’s eyes slowly began to darken. “Reira! Answer me!” Reiji shook the child, slightly, to get Reira to wake.

Aster, Leo, Himika, and the rest of the Lancers ran over to the two Akaba brothers, as Leo knelt down to put two fingers to Reira’s neck. After about 10 seconds, Leo removed his fingers, saying, “There’s no pulse. Reira’s gone.”

The news made everyone around the vicinity gasp, as Reiji held his, now deceased, brother in his arms tightly. “No… It can’t be…”

“But if that’s the case, then what about Yuto, Ruri, and everyone else?!” Shun asked, grabbing Leo by the shoulder.

Leo looked at the ground, in complete sorrow, as he told the Raidraptor user, “Since Ray’s spirit was within Reira, it’s a foregone conclusion to say that Ray has died with Reira.” Shun gasped, realizing there was no way to get his best friend and sister back.

“No way…” Kaito breathed.

“So, Yuya, Yuzu, and everyone else are…” Sora said, balling his fists, and tears falling down his face.

Leo nodded. “There is no hope anymore. Not for this dimension,” Leo looked up at Zarc, who was laughing in absolute rapture. “Or any others.”

Reiji hugged his brothers’ corpse, and, surprisingly, he shed a single tear, which had landed on Yuya’s Pendant.

_“Reiji!”_

All of a sudden, Reiji heard a voice. It was like Reira’s, but slightly deeper, and more feminine-sounding. The D/D/D Duelist looked around, after hearing the voice, but the Lancers looked at him like there was something wrong with him.

_“Down here, Reiji!”_ The Akaba teen looked down, before seeing Yuya’s Pendulum at his feet. Picking up the pendant, he looked at it intently, before a girl with purple eyes, maroon/dark red hair, and strikingly looked like Serena, from his point of view.

“Ray?” Reiji said, making everyone react.

“Wait, Ray’s spirit is still alive?!” Leo exclaimed.

“So that means, that there’s still one last chance to save Yuya, after all!” Gongenzaka said, pumping his fist.

_“Throw me to Zarc, Reiji! It’s the only chance we have left!”_ Ray told her younger brother, as he gripped the pendant. The gray-haired teen then turned to Zarc, who still was laughing wildly. Reiji gripped the pendant with all his might.

Meanwhile, Zarc was in absolute ecstasy. He laughed in pleasure, as he processed his victory in his mind. Finally, he said, “Finally! It’s taken all these years, but I’ve finally done it! I’ve beaten Ray Akaba! Now… I truly am… The Strongest Duelist Who Ever Lived!”

“Zarc!” Reiji called out. The Demon Duelist looked at the Akaba teen, who had the pendant in his hand. _“Please, Ray. Finish this. I beg of you.”_ With all his might, he threw Yuya’s pendant at Zarc.

_“That accursed trinket?!”_ Zarc thought, before the edge of the pendant hit him dead center in the forehead, and as the Pendulum began to glow, Zarc yelled, in absolute pain. The landscape around them was enveloped in a bright light, blinding everyone.

* * *

 

Yuya’s eyes opened, only to see that he was in a dark purple space. The tomato looked around, seeing nothing but a huge purple void.

“Hello? Is anybody there?” Yuya called out, only hearing the echo of his voice. “Anybody? Please, answer me!”

“It’s useless, Yuya.” A voice told him, as Yuya turned around, to see a familiar face. One quite like his own, in fact.

“Yuto!” Yuya called out to his Xyz counterpart.

“Unfortunately, this place nothing but an absolute void. There’s no one else but us here.” Yuto told him.

“Rin!” a voice called out, and the two counterparts turned around, and saw a boy with blue-and-yellow hair, wearing a riding suit. “You here? Rin?”

“You!” Yuto called out, remembering the banana from their last encounter. Yugo’s head then turned in the direction of the two counterparts.

“Oh! It’s you!” Yugo ran in Yuto’s direction, who readied his Duel Disk. “Waitwaitwait! Before you try and duel me, I just wanted to say… Sorry.” Yugo’s sudden apology took Yuto aback. “I had mistaken you for someone else I was looking for at the time.

“Someone else?” Yuto wondered, before he came to a realization. “Wait, why are you here?”

“Hmm?” Yugo lightly scratched his cheek, trying to think. “Well, all I can remember was that there was this guy who looked like me…” Yugo looked at Yugo and Yuya. “…and you guys, too, come to think of it... We dueled, and then things went blank, before I snapped out of whatever was wrong with me, and then I lost. But after that, I was simply within this endless void, looking for anybody.”

“Yugo,” Yuya said, putting his hands on the Synchro user’s shoulders. “What did this guy look like?”

“Well, he had weird hair, like purple in the front, and pink in the back, and he wore a hell of a lot of purple, and his eyes did this weird slit thing, also, his eyebrows were like as huge as caterpillars!”

With this information, Yuya instantly knew who he was talking about. “Yugo! If he beat you in a duel, then that means you were inside of him!”

Yugo blushed profusely, before saying, “Hey, man! You better watch what the hell you’re saying, and who you’re saying it to! I’m not that kind of a guy!”

“No! I mean, like, he absorbed you!” Yuya said, waving his hands hurriedly. “When you defeated Yuto, I absorbed him, and took his Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon.” Yuya explained, but then, came to a realization. “Wait… If I defeated Yuri, and he absorbed Yugo, and Clear Wing, then that must mean that-!”

“You catch on quickly, Yuya.” A fourth voice said, as the 3 counterparts looked at the boy. He was slightly shorter than the rest of his counterparts, but he had the most chilling exterior to him.

“You!” Both Yuto and Yugo said, readying their Duel Disks.

“I’ve been waiting a long time for this. You’re going to tell me Ruri is, right now, Pawn of Fusion!” Yuto said, getting visibly angry.

“Yeah! Rin too!” Yugo interjected.

“Hmpf. You two honestly think that you can defeat me as you are now? I already defeated Fusion over there.” Yuri snarked.

Yugo gained a visible tic mark on his forehead, saying, “Why the hell do you keep calling me Fusion?! I keep telling you, it’s Yugo, Yugo, YUGO!”

“It doesn’t matter what your name is.” Yuri said, readying his Duel Disk. “I can keep myself entertained with you two, over and over and over again.” Yuri’s eyes began to turn to slits.

Yuya stepped in-between his 3 counterparts. “Stop it!” The tomato outstretched his arms. “We must’ve been brought together for a reason! If we’re all fighting, then who knows what could happen to us?”

Yuri merely grinned. “You could be my partner, Yuya. Seeing as how you are the only one so far to ever defeat me, and I’m terribly outnumbered here.”

“I don’t want to fight them, or you!” Yuya fired back.

“Move it, Yuya!” Yuto barked.

“This effeminate bastard needs to be defeated, once and for all!” Yugo said.

_“All of you, stop it!”_ yet another voice called out, before the 4 same-faced boys looked in the voice’s direction, looking at a glowing spirit, who had the shape of a girl, descending on to the invisible ground. As she took a step, the spirit took the physical form of a young adolescent girl.

“Yuzu!/Ruri!/Rin!” three of the counterparts called out, while Yuri merely raised a furry eyebrow.

“Who’s she?” Yuri wondered.

“Yuzu!” Yuya ran over the girl, tears in his eyes. He hugged her as tight as he could, while sobbing and sniffling. “Yuri told me that you were absorbed into ARC-V! I thought you were gone forever!”

Yugo then wiped his eyes, and Yuto warmly smiled at the scene.

“I’m not Yuzu.” The girl told him, and the way she said that hit Yuya like a brick. She then turned her head towards Yuto and Yugo. “And I’m not Ruri, or Rin, either.”

Yuri walked up to the girl, asking, “So if you’re not Yuzu, Ruri, or Rin, then are you exactly?”

“I am the original form of Yuzu, Ruri, Rin, and Serena. I am also the daughter of Leo Akaba, Ray.” She told them, making them all gasp.

“What? The Professor never mentioned that he had a daughter before.” Yuri said, cupping his chin with his palm. “ _Is that why we had to collect those girls?_ ”

“Wait, so you’re Rin and Yuzu and the other girls, then what are we supposed to be?” Yugo asked.

Ray’s face turned into a sorrowful one. “The 4 of you… You’re the Demon Duelist… Zarc.”

Yugo and Yuri gasped at this, as they were unaware of this information. “Z-Zarc? Demon? So does that mean WE’RE the bad guys here?”

“It makes sense. The 4 girls altogether make Ray, since they have her Bracelets, and given we have similar-looking Dragons, and faces, us ‘becoming one’ results in Zarc.” Yuto explained.

“But Leo was trying to fuse the dimensions together, and revive Ray as well!” Yuya interjects, as Ray’s eyes widened.

“Father was trying to… revive me?” Ray realized. The maroon-haired girl turned her back to the 4 boys. “He really shouldn’t have done that…”

“But why? If the world was whole, we wouldn’t have to go the trouble of going through dimensions to see a certain person, wouldn’t we?” Yuri wondered, earning stares of contempt from his counterparts.

“But I wanted the worlds to stay apart…” Ray muttered.

“Why? You were the reason Zarc was defeated the first time!” Yuya told her, before she turned back to them, tears streaming down her face.

“Because… I made Zarc what he is.” Ray told them.

* * *

 

**Fan-Made Cards:**

Revenge of The Supreme King  
Normal Spell Card  
When this card is activated, all Spell/Trap cards on the opponent's side of the field are banished, in exchange, you can summon one face-up monster in your extra deck.


	2. Child Days, Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day Ray met Zarc.

The Dragon Boys stood there, in complete shock. They had realized that the cause of Zarc’s want for anger and destruction, was all because of Ray, the very person who defeated him before?

“What do you mean? What really happened all those years ago?” Yuya asked.

Ray remained silent.

“Come, now.” Yuri said. “We unknowingly went to the trouble of gathering all four of us to resurrect Zarc, so you may as well tell us his story.”

Ray remained silent, taking in a breath.

“…There’s just so much to talk about…”

The four counterparts looked up at the spirit, who had her head down, before looking up at Zarc’s components. “…But, if I must, I should start from the beginning. It all started many years ago…”

* * *

 

**Flashback, Original Dimension**

A young boy, approximately the age of 8, wearing dark brown jeans, and a blue hoodie to cover his face, ran through the gargantuan amount of people in the crowd, with packs of cards being concealed in his sleeves. Behind the boy, two grown men were chasing him, very pissed off at that.

“Hey kid! Stop!” One of the men chasing him ordered.

“You pay first! Then you get the cards!” The other shouted.

The boy grabbed another person, throwing him in front of the men. “Caught you! Now you’re gon-” the man stopped, as he pulled the hoodie off the child. The boy had brown hair, shaped in a bowl-cut, and blue eyes. Ultimately, he wasn’t the boy that they were looking for.

“What did I do? I was just pushed to the ground by this other boy…” the boy sniffled.

“Tch! Kid, did you see where the other boy went?” the man asked.

**Meanwhile, in a nearby alleyway…**

The young boy had hidden from the men, who were chasing him, because he had “borrowed”, well, stole, some cards that were worth a fortune, according to the shop owner. He eyed the cards for a bit, before deciding to take the cards for himself. The boy took off his hood, revealing his silver hair, with green highlights, for some reason, and yellow eyes.

“Heh. That was way too easy!” The boy said, smirking to himself. He reached into his pocket, pulling out a card. “Hear that, Odd-Eyes? You could have a new friend soon!”

**(A/N: Young Zarc VA: Andrea C. Miller; I know this is kinda pointless but, y’know.)**

The boy tore open the first pack, revealing 5 cards. He skimmed through the pack, seeing nothing of value, except one monster.

“Oh wow! It’s a ritual monster!” Looking at the card, which read ‘Cyberclone Radius (RAH-dee-us, as Zarc pronounces it.)’ the boy read its effects, one of which said, “Can also be used as a tuner monster…. Oh, man! I don’t even have any Synchros to use it with! Oh, well. Maybe I’ll get lucky with the next few packs.”

**3 Packs Later…**

“Dammit! I can’t believe I didn’t get any Synchros in these packs!” the young boy groaned, as a plurge of Normal Monsters, Level 2 Effect Monsters, and Trap Cards littered the ground. He looked to the final pack, with a look of pure callousness. “Well, maybe the last one’ll have something worthwhile.” The boy picked up the pack, saying, “Alright, one more, woo-hoo.” In the most deadpan of voices. He opened it, to see…

…

…

…

…“Holy…”

“ **YES!!!!!!!!!!!!** ” The boy screamed out, so loud, that everyone in the vicinity could hear his jump for joy.

EVERYONE.

“OhmygoodnessIcan’tbelievethatIactuallygotaSynchroMonstereveryone’sgonnabesojealousofmethatI’llbeadoredandidolizedandimmoratalized-“

“There he is!” the boy snapped out of this ecstasy, to realize that he had alerted the people that were chasing him earlier.

“…Crap!” the boy tucked the 2 cards away in his sleeves, making a break for it, but this time, they had another person at the end of the alleyway.

“End of the line, kid.” One of the men said, grabbing the child by the hood.

The boy huffed, not even resisting, knowing that the gig was up.

* * *

 

“…Stealing cards without paying, running away from elders, ruining a perfectly good fruit stand, making babies cry,” the police listed off, as the boy and his caretaker sat there, looking at the ground, and all around. “It’s safe to say that you’ve gotten yourself into a huge pile, which you can’t find your way out of.

“We’re extremely sorry, officer, it’s just that, I want to buy cards for him, but our orphanage just doesn’t have those type of funds, and this little one’s such a troublemaker, you know?” the caretaker nervously chuckled.

“Hmph. Shut up, stupid hippie.” The boy mumbled.

“What?!” The caretaker grabbed the boy by the throat. “I ought to-“

“Ahem.” The officer grunted, raising an eyebrow, reminding them where they were. The caretaker let him go, patting him on the head. “Well, since the cards you… borrowed, as you said? Anyways, they weren’t valuable in any way, shape, or form.”

The boy’s mouth fell open. “Oh… dammit…”

“But, you still stole them, regardless of their value.” The Officer said, walking behind the boy. “However, I think that we can work something out.”

* * *

 

“The boy’s gonna have to work in this card shop, until he can pay off all of the cards that he stole.” The officer said, handing the boy a mop.

“Don’t worry! He’ll be a loyal, law-abiding citizen soon enough! Isn’t that right, boy?” His caretaker asked.

The boy merely scoffed, as the police officer scratched his head. “Alrighty, then. You stay out of trouble, you hear?”

“No promises.” The boy replied. At that time, a man with dark skin, walked into the shop, his hand held behind him.

“Watch this.” The shopkeeper whispered to the boy. “Ah, Leo! Are you here for a new deck? Or could I interest you in some-“

“I’m not here to buy for myself. I’m here for her.” The man, who was named Leo, stated. He pulled out a young girl, around the age of 8, from behind him, who was holding his hand, whose maroon-red hair was tied in a ponytail, and wearing a purple dress, styled in a type of galaxy. And on the bridge of her nose, blue framed glasses rested on her face.

“This is my daughter, Ray. She wants to start dueling, but I want to give her a deck to start off with. Isn’t that right?” Leo explained, gesturing to his daughter.

Ray adjusted her glasses. “That’s right! I wanna put my place in history, alongside the greats! Like Yugi Muto, Jaden Yuki, and Yusei Fudo! Then I’ll be forever known as the queen of games, and everyone will worship me!” Ray had sparkles in her eyes, wondering about her future.

“You won’t do that.” The boy suddenly spoke, as everyone looked to his direction. “Just because you’re an awesome duelist, won’t mean anything to everyone. You’re just a little fish, with the biggest of egos, and if you put yourself on a pedestal like that,” The boy looked directly at the girl. “You’re going to be knocked down, and crack your head hard on the way down.”

“Who do you think you are, speaking to my daughter like that?!” Leo yelled at the boy.

“It’s the truth. The girl has way too many expectations.” The boy replied.

Ray immediately got in his face. Who did this boy think he was, and who was he to judge her future goals? “You have some nerve, kid! I’m going to mop the floor with you, and show you why I’m the future queen of games!” Ray took the deck, loading it in her duel disk.

“Wait, Ray!” Leo objected.

“I’ll be fine, father!” Ray interjected.

The boy loaded his deck in his disk as well. “Alright then, if this really is your first duel, then this’ll be a piece of cake!”

“DUEL!”

**Ray LP: 4000  
Hand: 5**

**V.S.**

**Boy LP: 4000  
Hand: 5**

**_A WHILE LATER…_ **

**Ray LP: 4000 – WIN**

**Boy LP: 0**

Ray put away her duel gear, as she walked towards the boy, extending his hand to him, which he accepted. “You were really strong, you know!” the boy complimented.

“You weren’t any slouch, either.” Ray complimented back, smiling.

The shop owner then interjected, saying, “I take it that you like that deck, right? Well, since you dueled so wonderfully with it, I’ll give you that deck for free!” Ray’s eyes lit up with happiness when he said that.

Leo smiled at his daughter, taking her hand. “Come on, Ray, let’s go.” The pair turned towards the door, before they heard:

“Wait!” the boy shouted, as he bolted in front of them, blocking the door. “I really want to duel you again! Please! You’re really, really good, but I know that I can beat you! Honestly!”

Ray was taken aback by this, as this request was sudden, and out of the blue, but she sighed, saying, “Okay, fine. I’ll duel you again.” The boy’s eyes lit up at her answer. “But just know this: no matter how many times we duel, the result will always be the same! I’ll win, and you’ll keep asking to duel me again and again… uh…” Ray scratched her head, thinking. “Sorry, but I didn’t catch your name.”

“Me?” The boy smirked. “You can call me Zarc! The man who’s gonna be the strongest duelist in the world!” he proclaimed, pointing his thumb to his chest, as an anime explosion went off behind him.

…Dead silence.

_“Is he serious?”_ Ray mentally sweatdropped.


	3. Child Days, Part 2

**_Two months later…_ **

After Zarc had finished his service to the card shop, and he and Ray had about… 50 more duels with each other, Ray had felt indebted to visit him at his orphanage, to give him a few dueling tips, at least.

“Give it back!” a voice cried out, his voice breaking.

Ray heard the voice, but it was too light to be Zarc’s, and she saw a big kid holding another kid’s locket hostage, while his friends laughed about it.

“Give it back!” the kid sobbed. “That’s the only picture I have of my parents! Give it back!”

Ray, disgusted with the scene, ran up to the kid, grabbing his arm, to grab the locket. “What kind of sick person are you? Give the kid back his things!”

“Get off me, girlie!” the big kid said, as he threw Ray off of his arm, knocking the 8-year old’s glasses off her face.

The boy had tears streaming down his face, while he wailed loudly. All of a sudden, both the boy and Ray felt a wind flow past them, and the bully and his gang were all kicked in the face. Ray, confused by what had happened, she reached for her glasses, seeing…

“Zarc…” Ray breathed.

The silver-and-green haired boy grabbed the locket, and handed it to the sobbing boy. “Here. Take it.”

The boy’s eyes brightened, taking the locket back. “Thank you so much! You’re really nice!”

“Tch. No, I’m not…” Zarc muttered, under his breath, blushing. The boy ran off, and Zarc turned to the bully.

“You Brat…” the big kid said, clutching his face. “How dare you even think about hitting ME in the face?!”

“I didn’t THINK about hitting you in the face,” Zarc began, fully turning towards the bully. “Because I actually DID it.”

“Damn it!” the bully clutched his fist, and then started chuckling. “Duel me! I know you can’t even beat a head cold, let alone me!”

Zarc then chuckled, himself. “I accept your challenge! But just realize, I’m not the same person that I was yesterday! I’m a boy who’s gonna be the strongest duelist in the world!” The two set their duel gear up, as Zarc was talking.

“Zarc-” Ray began, but was cut off.

“Don’t worry, I’ll duel you when this is all over, ‘kay?” Zarc said, giving her a reassuring smile. Ray’s response was to adjust her glasses.

“DUEL!”

**Zarc LP: 4000  
Hand: 5**

**VS**

**Bully LP: 4000  
Hand: 5**

“My turn!” Zarc declared. “I summon Cyberclone Rubberman!” A robot came out of a portal, stretching its limbs as it did, flanked with a familiar scar under its left eye, and ‘X’ mark on the center of his chest.

 **Cyberclone Rubberman**  
LEVEL: 3  
ATK: 2000

“That’ll be all from me!” Zarc finished, which caused Ray to facepalm.

“Zarc, when Rubberman is summoned to the field, he has the ability to Special Summon one Level 7 monster from your deck without offering any kind of tribute!” Zarc’s eyes comically widened in realization, as if to say, ‘Ooh.. right…’ “I told you that like, five times!” Ray adjusted her glasses, as the boy scratched his head, nervously.

The bully laughed, running his hands through his beanie. “Oh man, this’ll be easy! I’ll defeat you, and still have enough time to watch the next episode of _My Hero Academia_!” He put his hand on his deck, saying, “My turn! Draw!” He sneered, looking at his card. “Since you control a monster, and I don’t, I Special Summon Hazy Flame Griffin in Defense Mode!” The orange beast appeared before them, but appeared to be on fire. After letting out a huge screech, it took a defensive position.

Hazy Flame Griffin  
LEVEL: 6  
DEF: 2100

“Whoa! Hazy Beasts! I’ve heard of them, but I’ve never seen them up close before!” Ray exclaimed, surprised.

Zarc tilted his head to see if what he was seeing was real. “ _Is that thing on fire? Doesn’t that hurt, though?”_

“But I’m not done! I can summon another monster, and here he comes! My Hazy Flame Cerberus!” The tri-headed dog came out of a ball of fire, and roared, as it was enveloped in orange fire, and its mane in red fire.

Hazy Flame Cerberus  
LEVEL: 6  
ATK: 2000 – 1000 (due to effect)

Zarc tugged at his collar, feeling the intense heat these monsters were giving off.

“Now, I’ll place two cards facedown, and end my turn with that!” two cards appeared in the Spell/Trap Zone.

Zarc smirked. “Alright! Now this is when the real fun begins!” the 8-year old drew his card. “Now I summon Cyberclone Shinobi!”A ninja, wearing a metallic jumpsuit styled in orange-and-black, and whiskers on his cheeks.

 **Cyberclone Shinobi**  
LEVEL: 3  
ATK: 2300

“Now I-“

“Hey, Zarc!” Ray suddenly called out, interrupting Zarc’s flow.

“What do you want? Kinda in the middle of doing something awesome, here!” the boy retorted at his friend.

Ray adjusted her glasses, as she said, “You didn’t forget about Shinobi’s effect, did you?”

Zarc sweatdropped, as he shouted, “Of course I didn’t! I’m not stupid, you know!” *huff* “I activate Shinobi’s special effect! When both Rubberman and Shinobi are on the field, I can get their friend out to join them, and his name is Cyberclone Shinigami!” Another portal opened, and a black-robed man with bandages covering his mouth, and long black hair appeared on Zarc’s field, giving Zarc’s other monsters a thumbs up.

 **Cyberclone Shinigami**  
LEVEL: 3  
ATK: 2500

“And now that they’re all on the field, I can activate the Spell card, **CyberPowers Combine**! With this card, I can summon 1 Level 7 or higher monster from my deck or hand, and double its Attack until the end of this turn!” Zarc declared.

“You what?!” The bully gulped.

“ _Whoa… he didn’t make this type of play last time!_ ” Ray thought, mouth agape from shock and surprise.

“Come forth, the Dragon with Dichromatic Eyes! My loyal partner that’s stayed with me through thick and thin, Odd-Eyes Dragon!” The Dragon’s Eyes glowed, and let out a mighty roar, as the 3 monsters gave him his energy.

Odd-Eyes Dragon  
LEVEL: 7  
ATK: 2500  5000

“Alright, Odd-Eyes, Attack Cerebus!” The dragon charged toward the 3-headed canine, slamming into it, destroying the canine.

“Alright! Now he’s- huh?” Zarc realized. As the smoke cleared, the kid was still standing, his monster not destroyed, but he still had his monster and Life Points intact.

**Bully LP: 1500  
Hand: 2**

“No way… I wanted to end this whole thing in one hit… how did it not work?” Zarc wondered, completely in shock.

“My Trap Card, Half Unbreak, that’s how.” The bully sneered. “When this card is activated, a monster in battle cannot be destroyed by battle, and the battle damage I take is halved!”

“Damn!” Zarc cursed, biting his lip. _“I can’t attack again, due to CyberPower Combine’s effect making my other monsters useless… then I guess…”_ “…I end my turn!”

“WAHAHAHA! What happened to all that confidence you had earlier? Now it’s over! My turn! Draw!” he drew his card. “First off, I activate the Continuous Spell Card, Hazy Pillar! With this, I can Summon Hazy Flame monsters for one less Tribute!”

Ray gasped. “But that means…!”

“He can summon any monster that he wants!” Zarc finished, his eyes shaking.

“I summon Hazy Flame Sphinx!” the majestic monster came out of a portal, and it licked itself.

Hazy Flame Sphinx  
LEVEL: 6  
ATK: 1900

“And now, Sphinx’s effect activates! I can declare one card, and send it to the Graveyard, and if it’s the same card I declare, I can Special Summon 1 more FIRE monster! I declare this next card to be a monster!” the bully drew his card, and was pleased. “And what do you know? It is!” Zarc and Ray gasped.

“And now I Special Summon Hazy Flame Mantikor!” the flames blazed again, as the beast was covered in red, yellow, and blue flames, and let out a strong roar.

Hazy Flame Mantikor  
LEVEL: 6  
ATK: 2200

Zarc, visibly sweating from the heat, and the pressure of the duel, realized something big. “He’s got 4 of those Haze things… Oh no!”

“I overlay all 4 of my Hazy Flame monsters!” Zarc’s opponent declared, and all 4 spiraled into the air, turning red, and sailed into a galaxy portal. “Xyz Summon! Come forth, king of all FIRE monsters! Hazy Flame Basiltrice!” The monster appeared in a Ball of Fire, slowly cracking, and revealing itself to be a huge bird, and let out a giant shriek.

Hazy Flame Basiltrice  
RANK: 6  
ATK: 2500  
OVU: 4

“Whoa…” Zarc said, sweating to the point where he took his hoodie off.

“It’s so big…” Ray mused. “But still, Odd-Eyes has the same number of ATK as Basiltrice, so what good will that do?”

“And Basiltrice’s effect activates! Because it has 2 or more Overlay Units, it gets 200 ATK for every monster attached to it! So now, my monster gains 800 ATK!”

Hazy Flame Basiltrice  
ATK: 2500 → 3300

“Oh, crap!” Zarc shouted, sweating profusely.

“Now, Basitrice, Attack Odd-Eyes!” The bird charged towards the dragon, and glowed with the heat of many suns.

“Shinigami’s effect activates!” Shinigami the pushed Odd-Eyes out of the way, as he outstretched his arms. “When a monster attacks, Shinigami can deplete all its ATK, and end the Battle Phase after its destruction!”

**Cyberclone Shinigami  
ATK: 2500 → 0**

“But, you still take the damage!” the bully said, as Zarc’s monster was destroyed, sending him flying back.

**Zarc LP: 4000 → 700  
Hand: 1**

“Zarc!” Ray shouted.

Zarc struggled as he got up. He gave Ray a wide smile, saying, “I’m alright, Ray! Don’t worry!” To which the bespectacled girl sighed out of relief.

“My turn’s over!” the bully said, laughing.

Zarc panted. _“Okay, the next turn, I’m DEFINETLY going to lose… So please, PLEASE let me draw something good this next turn!”_ “It’s my…. TURN!! DRAW!!” Zarc drew his final card, and smiled widely. “It’s here!”

Ray raised an eyebrow.

“I activate the Ritual Spell Card, **Cyber Upgade**!” Zarc declared, as a stone with 6 lights, all which were shut off, appeared behind him.

“Ritual?!” the bully realized.

“I can tribute as many monsters as I like, as long their Levels equal 6! I tribute Cyberclone Rubberman and Shinobi!” both jumped into the air, and as they disappeared, they lit up the lights of the stone.

“Warrior whom has laid dormant forthousands of years. Resurrect now, and become the very hero that will lead me to victory!” The stone cracked open, revealing a blinding light. “Ritual Summon! Come forth, Level 6! Cyberclone Radius!” A robot appeared in the form of a knight, wearing Gold armor, equipped with silver lining, on his breastplate. In his hands, he held two swords, on each of them, they had foreign writing for ‘Millennium Hero’ on them, and out of his helmet, strands of blond hair peeked out.

 **Cyberclone Radius**  
LEVEL: 6  
ATK: 1000

“Beautiful…” Ray breathed.

“What the…” The bully said, in a combination of fear and surprise. He then regained his composure, saying, “But still, it doesn’t hold a candle to MY monster!”

“Strength isn’t everything, you know.” Zarc scolded him. “I activate Radius’ effect! When I Ritual Summon this card with at least 2 Cyberclones, I can Special Summon 1 Fusion, Xyz, or Synchro monster from my Extra Deck, as long as I halve my Life Points!”

“You what?!” the bully screamed.

“Come forth, my newest monster!” A portal opened up on the ground, reminiscent of a Synchro tuning portal. “Clear Wing Synchro Dragon!” The dragon flew out of the portal, and flew around for a bit.

**Zarc LP: 700 →350  
Hand: 0**

Clear Wing Synchro Dragon  
LEVEL: 7  
ATK: 2500

“A Synchro monster?! Ray realized.

“No way…” his opponent said, sweating. “However, it’s still not as strong as my Basiltrice! And I activate its effect! By removing one Overlay unit, I can banish one monster on the field, and I choose Radius!” he declared, as he pointed at his monster.

Hazy Beast Basiltrice  
ORU: 4 → 3

“I was hoping you’d say that.” Zarc smirked, which took his opponent aback. “Clear Wing Synchro Dragon’s effect activates! When a monster effect targets one Level 5 or higher monster, I can destroy it!” The fire bird was destroyed, right in front of his opponent’s eyes.

“N-No way!”

“And when that monster is destroyed, its original ATK are all given to Clear Wing!” Zarc finished.

Clear Wing Synchro Dragon  
ATK: 2500 → 5000

“Dammit!”

“Now, go, Clear Wing Synchro Dragon, and attack him directly!” the dragon flew up into the air. “With your beautiful, and wondrous wings, end this duel!” The dragon began to descend. “Helldive Whirlwind Slasher!” The dragon slammed into the ground, creating a shockwave, knocking his opponent back.

**Zarc LP: 350**

**Bully LP: 0 – LOSER**

Zarc put his duel gear away, and walked over to Ray, saying, “Hell yeah! I totally owned that bastard! Did you see that, Ray?” to which the maroon-haired girl rolled her eyes.

“No, I’m blind.” She sarcastically replied, to which Zarc pouted.

“I’m gonna beat you, now! Because… you’re looking at the man…”

* * *

 

**_10 Years later…_ **

“…who’s gonna be the greatest Duelist who ever lived!” Zarc said, now 18 years old, and in a duel, in one of the biggest arenas in his town.

**Zarc LP: 100  
Hand: 0**

Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon  
ATK: 2500 → 5500 (due to effect)  
RANK: 4  
ORU: 0

Starve Venom Fusion Dragon  
ATK: 2800  
LEVEL: 8

**Opponent LP: 3000  
Hand: 1**

No cards

“Now, attack, Dark Rebellion! Lightning Rebellion… DISOBEY!” Zarc commanded, and his dragon charged into his opponent, reducing his life points.

**Zarc LP: 100**

**Opponent LP: 0 – LOSER**

The entire arena erupted in cheers, as Zarc was named the Duel King, and held up his trophy, with over welling pride. The man nearly burst into tears at the feeling.

* * *

 

“Wow… that sounds great!” Yuya said.

“And it appears that Zarc was actually a good person, just misguided.” Yuri mused, hand on his chin.

“Yeah, that he was.” Ray replied, smiling slightly. But her smile turned into a frown. “Unfortunately, that’s where the good times end…”

* * *

 

**Fan-Made Cards**

**Cyberclone Rubberman**  
Warrior/Effect  
LEVEL: 3   
ATK: 2000/DEF: 1000  
Effect: When this card is successfully Normal Summoned, Special Summon one Level 5 or Higher monster, from either your Deck or Hand. When this effect resolves, switch this card to Defense Mode.

 **Cyberclone Shinobi**  
Warrior/Effect  
LEVEL: 3  
ATK: 2300/DEF: 1200  
Effect: When this monster is successfully Normal Summoned, Special Summon one “Cyberclone Shinigami” to the field.

 **Cyberclone Shinigami**  
Warrior/Effect  
LEVEL: 3  
ATK: 2500/DEF: 700  
Effect: If an opponent’s monster attacks, make this monster’s ATK 0, and turn this into the attack target, after Damage Calculation, end the Battle Phase.

 **CyberPowers Combine**  
Normal Spell Card  
Effect: If you have at least 3 or more ‘Cyberclone’ monsters, Special Summon one ‘Odd-Eyes’ monster, and double its ATK until the end of this turn.

 **Cyber Upgrade**  
Ritual Spell Card  
Effect: This card can be used to Ritual Summon ‘Cyberclone Radius’. You must tribute cards from your hand or field with levels that equal 6 or more.

 **Cyberclone Radius**  
Ritual/Warrior/Effect  
LEVEL: 6  
ATK: 1000/DEF: 100  
Effect: This can only be summoned through a Ritual Spell Card, and not by any other ways. During the Main Phase, you can either:   
•Synchro Summon one monster. If you do not have the required materials, use this card as a Tuner.  
•Special Summon one Fusion, Xyz, or Synchro monster. However, this card will not be able to attack for the rest of this turn.


	4. Child Days, Part 3

**_A few months later…_ **

After Zarc became a pro duelist, he had become a respected and well-known individual. After his duels, the crowd would be raptured in a delight of smiles and cheers. He was helped by his faithful dragons through every duel he had, ensuring his victories. However, as times went on, the tables had begun to turn, and the audiences began to change…

“Hey! Hey!” an all grown-up Ray yelled, banging on the door of a promoter. Rather hard, at that. “We had a deal! You were supposed to pay me in full! This is only half!”

The promoter cracked the door halfway, the door connected by a chain lock. “Listen, lady, I pay based on crowd reaction. And you barely shook the crowd awake. You were just lulling them to sleep by the end of your duel. So that’s what you get.”

“But I-!” Ray began to argue, before the door slammed in her face, hearing the tumblers lock. Ray sighed, looking at the check in her hands. “This’ll barely put me through the month…”

Ray stepped outside, sitting on the curb, check in her hands. “Dammit… I wish that dueling was like it was back in the days of Yugi and Jaden…” Storm clouds began to form in the sky, and Ray quickly put the check in her front pocket. However, as she began to walk home, she felt a drop of water drip on her cheek. The maroon-haired girl looked up at the sky, seeing it was so gray, it was almost black.

“Oh, crap!” Ray cursed, as she started to run, in order to get out of the rain, however, she got tripped up on a crack in the sidewalk, leading to her getting soaked by the rain. But suddenly, the rain stopped, even though Ray could see the droplets falling on the ground and out of the sky.

“What the…?” Ray murmured, nearly quiet.

“Now, what’s a pretty lady like yourself doing laying on the sidewalk?” a voice questioned, and Ray looked up to see…

“Zarc..!”

* * *

After Zarc took Ray back to his apartment, she took a shower to warm up (and reduce the possibility of catching cold), and got a change of clothes.

“So, Zarc,” Ray began, stepping out of the shower, clad in a bathrobe. “This is really where you live, huh?”

“Yeah.” Zarc replied. “This isn’t much, but its home.” The silver-haired boy smiled to himself. “So how’s life been treating you?”

“Good, for the most part. School is actually enjoyable, Dad is swamped in work, like always... The Dueling Circuit, on the other hand, is another story.” Ray explained, her smile turning into a frown.

“I think I know what you’re talking about.” Zarc went, walking into the room, wearing pajama pants, and a muscle shirt saying, “DUEL!” “Back in the day, dueling used to be simpler. There were good guys, and bad guys, and in the end, good won the day. But now, good faces off against evil, and the audience wants the good guy to just get pounded into oblivion.” Zarc sighed. “It’s insanity, I’m telling you.”

“Yeah, well, at least you’re getting paid.” Ray went, a dejected tone in present in her voice. “I just barely got paid for the duel I just went through. Apparently, I’m too ‘boring’ for pro-dueling audiences.”

“Well, boring isn’t the word I’d use.” Zarc said, lighting up Ray’s face. “Now, complacent, uninspired, unimaginative, monotonous, THOSE are what I’d use to describe your dueling style.” Ray threw a wet towel at him, with a scowl on her face as she got dressed.

“If my dueling is so monotonous, then how come you beaten me yet?” Ray fired back, as Zarc chuckled, preparing two cups of instant ramen for the both of them.

…

…

…

**_“BECOME ONE WITH US.”_ **

Zarc turned around, after hearing those words, but he then saw that absolutely no one was behind him. He shook it off, assuming it was Ray playing tricks on him.

…

…

**_“BECOME ONE WITH US.”_ **

Zarc was sure that he heard the voices for sure, now. He had turned around, looking where the voice was coming from.

…

**_“BECOME ONE WITH US.”_ **

Zarc went down his hallway, and with each, pressing step that he took, he found that the voice was increasing in volume.

**_“BECOME ONE WITH US.”_ **

Zarc slowly tracked the origin of the voices to his bedroom, and slowly, the voices were intensifying in volume, now. Zarc gulped, slowly reaching for the door, wanting to find what the sensation of this voice was. Gripping the doorknob, he…

“Zarc?” The silver haired teen turned around, to see Ray, who had helped herself to a change of new clothes, and some cup ramen. “What are you doing?”

Zarc turned to face his friend, asking, “Just now, you didn’t hear those voices?”

Ray raised an eyebrow. “Voices? What do you mean?”

Zarc opened his mouth to explain, but cut himself off, thinking that she would find him insane, like many others did at his orphanage. So instead, he told her, “Nothing. I guess this place is so old, weird noises pop up from time to time.” He then put his signature grin on his face, scratching the back of his head. Ray looked at him for a bit, wondering if what he said was genuine, but quickly shook it off.

* * *

“Now, Jurrac Titano! Put this fool out of commission!” the duelist said, ramming his monster into the poor duelist, draining him of the rest of his life points.

**Dyno LP: 4000 - WIN**

**Opponent: 0**

**“And another decisive win by Dyno! The young up-and-comer who’s had the best winning streak since the duel league’s reigning champion, Zarc!”** the announcer boasted over the PA, inflating Dyno’s ego even further. **“At 27 wins, and 0 losses, is there anyone in the world who can best this formidable foe?!”**

“So that’s Dyno (DEE-noh), huh?” Ray asked, taking a sip of her cola.

“Yep. He blatantly, and violently, may I add, attacks his opponents, and what’s worse is, the audience just eats it up. He’s put all his opponents in the hospital, and in one instance, they even called off the duel because his opponent passed out!”

“That’s horrible.”

“I know. But hey, anything to be entertained by a card game, am I right?” Zarc scoffed. Just then, he saw the promoter out of the corner of his eye, coming towards him.

“Hey, Zarc.”

“What’s up?”

“Here’s the thing: You’re dueling Dyno next week.”

“What? Why?”

“Well, you’re the undefeated- well, ALMOST undefeated, hello there, Ray- Youth Champion, Dyno’s on a roll the likes we’ve never seen before. Putting the two of you together is gonna be the duel of the century. We’ve got deals to stream it worldwide, already.” The promoter explained, surprising both Zarc and Ray.

“You’ve already started promoting this?!” Zarc exclaimed.

“A month in advance. But, I wouldn’t get too worried. You’ve got this in the bag, don’t you? After all, all you have to lose is the Youth Championship trophy, your credibility, and, oh yeah, YOUR LIVELIHOOD.”

Zarc listened to this, clenching his fists, enough to draw blood through his gloves, before reluctantly muttering, “Okay, fine, I’ll do it.”

“Atta boy! You may have everything to lose, but think about what you’re going to gain from this duel alone! I’m telling you, your branding is going to be WORLDWIDE!”

As the promoter walked off, Zarc clenched his fist even harder, and growled lowly. Ray, noticing this, grabbed Zarc’s hand, noticing his bloody palm.

“Zarc…”

Zarc turned to her, showing that grin of his. “Just part of the job, am I right?” The dragon boy walked off, with Ray putting on a concerned face for her friend.

* * *

**_One week later…_ **

Zarc was squatting in the hallway, mentally preparing for his duel. His style of dueling had propelled him to the top of the Youth Circuit, but realizing that his style of dueling was passé, with crowds jeering him, and the audience got louder every week, but he was fully determined to get the back on his side with this duel. With a determined look on his face, he was ready to make his way out to the duel field, when suddenly…

“Zarc!” the silver haired boy turned his head, seeing Ray run up to him.

“Ray!” Zarc looked at the girl, who had lifted up her goggles. As she did that, Zarc gave her a weird look, as if to say, “What in the hell?”

“What’s up?”

“Nothing, but I just wanna know…” Zarc put his finger on her goggles, making a “Duh” face. “…What in the green hell is with those LAAAAME goggles? Don’t you wear contacts these days?”

Ray puffed out her cheeks, getting a little mad. I’ll have you know, that these are to protect my eyes when dueling, Zarc!”

“Oh, yeah, because YOUR EYES could possibly get a papercut! I get it now!”

Ray huffed. “You’re unbelievable!” After about 30 seconds, her face softened, saying, “Listen, I wanted to talk to you about last week.  When the promoter told you about your duel about Dyno, you seemed a bit angry, so much so that you made yourself… bleed.” Ray hesitated saying the last part, the memory of his hand bleeding still ingrained in her memory.

Zarc was silent for a long time, before saying, “Look, Ray, I love to duel. I love the feeling of winning in duels. But I’m no Superman. I can’t be everything people want me to be, and I certainly can’t live up to everyone’s expectations of me.” Zarc looked out at the duel field, continuing with, “But I do it for them. I do it to see the smiles on their faces. And let me tell you, there’s no greater satisfaction than someone telling you that you’re their hero. That’s why I keep dueling. That’s why I put up with all this from the crowd, and promoters. For their smiles.” Zarc finished, with a warm, genuine smile on his face.

“That’s beautiful. That’s pretty noble, as well.” Ray complimented, wiping a tear from her eye. Suddenly, Zarc’s Duel Disk vibrated, realizing what time it was. “Crap! It’s almost time for my match!”

Zarc rushed out the hallway, to the elevator. But he just as he was about to enter the duel field, Ray tugged on his hand to tell him one more thing. “*Sigh* What is it, Ray? I’m kinda in a hurry!”

“Good luck.”

And with that, Ray walked off. Zarc stepped in the elevator, scratching his head.

**“AAAAAAAAAND NOW, DUEL ENTHUSIASTS, IS THE MATCH YOU’VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR! HERE GOES, OUR SUPERSPLENDIFORUS MAIN EVENT OF THE DAY!”** the announcer shouted over the PA, the pair of duelist rising from two opposite sides of the ring.

**“INTRODUCING FIRST, THE PRIDE AND JOY OF THE YOUTH DIVISION, THE REIGNING, DEFENDING, UNDISPUTED YOUTH LEAGUE CHAMPION… THE CYBERCLONE WIZARD, ZARC!!!!!”** as he was being announced, he received a mixed reaction from the fans, which he shook off.

**“AND HIS CHALLENGER, FROM THE JURASSIC ERA, THE UNDEFEATED, UNSTOPPABLE, INPENETRABLE, IMPREGNABLE… _DYNO!!!!!!!!!!!!”_** and as he was announced, Dyno had a larger reaction than Zarc, but this time, the crowd was 100% behind Dyno, even chanting his name to a rhythm.

As for Dyno, he was a young-looking man. He looked American, and had tanned skin and a muscular build. He wore jeans that were ripped at the knees, a brown leather jacket with spikes on the shoulders, and gray-blue dreadlocked hair.

“Hey,” Zarc said, outstretching his hand. “Let’s have a good match.”

Dyno simply glared at him, saying, “Hm. I expected something more from you, Youth Champion. But no matter. I guess I’m adding another win on my belt.” And the tanned man swatted Zarc’s hand away.

**“And now, as sponsored by Akaba Industries, we will activate the Solid Vision! ACTION FIELD, ON! JURASSIC WORLD!”** The entire field around the duelists changed, turning into a Dinosaur-Era jungle. The announcer took a deep breath, before saying, in unison with the audience, **“And now, these proud Duelists are locked in battle! They’ll soar through the skies with their monsters, as if they’re floating on air! Behold, the latest and greatest evolution of dueling is here! ACTION…”**

“DUEL!”

**Zarc LP: 4000  
Hand: 5**

**V.S.**

**Dyno LP: 4000  
Hand: 5**

“I’m gonna go first!” Zarc declared, picking out a card. “And I’ll start by Special Summoning a monster: Cyberclone Black Swordsman!” the monster appeared, as a metallic blue robot with a white wire frame, and a GIANT sword that he hauled over his back.

**Cyberclone Black Swordsman**  
LEVEL: 6  
ATK: 2200

“I can bring out Black Swordsman whenever I want, if I don’t have any monsters on my field! Next, I’ll call out Cyberclone Shinigami to the field!” The black-robed Shinigami tore through the summoning portal, with a thumbs-up.

**Cyberclone Shinigami**  
LEVEL: 3  
ATK: 2500

“I’ll finish up my turn with a facedown card!” Zarc said, as a facedown card appeared on his side of the field.

Dyno chuckled, smirking. “If that’s the best you’re gonna do, then I guess I can rest easy, knowing that my victory is assured.” Dyno drew his card. “I summon Jurrac Dino!” Out of the summoning portal, a tiny flaming raptor came out, and screeched.

Jurrac Dino  
LEVEL: 3  
ATK: 1700 → 1900

“What?!” Zarc cried.

“Because of Jurassic World’s special effect, I have the upper hand in this Duel!” Dyno smirked. “I’ll set one card facedown, and end my turn!” a facedown card appeared on Dyno’s field.

_“How strange…”_ Zarc thought, cupping his chin. _“He’s practically begging me to attack his monster, with the way he’s only got one monster on the field. And both are weaker than my Black Swordsman and Shinigami…”_ Zarc then bit the tip of his thumb, deep in thought. _“Now, the question is, do I attack recklessly, putting me at the mercy of his possible Trap, or do I keep myself wary, and fill up my field?”_

“I’ve decided!” Zarc drew his next card. “First, I’m playing the Spell Card, **Cyberclone: The End**!” Zarc inserted the card into his Duel Disk, and out of the card, came a young, well-endowed, girl, with long dark blue hair, and dressed in what looked to be a school uniform, modified to show off her… assets... She gave the audience a wink, and blew them a kiss.

**“WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAHHH!!!”** most of the audience erupted in joy, seeing the card in action.

“So what? You brought out a working girl?” Dyno snarked.

“Trust me, she’s more than just looks! Because now, I can use its effect! The End’s ability allows me to copy any monster on the field, and she becomes a monster right down to its effect until it’s destroyed!” Zarc explained, before pointing to Black Swordsman. “Cyberclone: The End, now becomes Cyberclone Black Swordsman!” Zarc ordered, as The End took a fighting stance.

**Cyberclone: The End**  
LEVEL: 6  
ATK: 2200

“Cyberclone Black Swordsman and The End’s effects activates! Black Swordsman can attack directly, but at only at half its ATK! And because of the effect of The End, she gains the effect as well! Go!” Zarc ordered, as both his monsters went at Dyno, and attacked him.

**Dyno LP:** 4000 → 1800  
**Hand:** 4

“And I’m not done! Because now I activate the Ritual Spell Card, **Cyber Upgrade!** ” Zarc declared, as a stone with 6 lights, all which were shut off, appeared behind him. “Now, I can tribute as many monsters as I like, as long as their Levels equal 6! I tribute Cyberclone Black Swordsman!” Black Swordsman jumped into the air, disappearing into the stone, lighting up the stone’s lights as he disappeared.

**“AHHHHHHHHHHH! COULD WE BE SEEING ZARC’S ACE MONSTER?!”** the announcer shouted.

“Warrior whom has laid dormant for thousands of years. Rise once again, and become the very hero that will lead me to victory!” The stone cracked open, revealing a blinding light. “Ritual Summon! Come forth, Level 6! Cyberclone Radius!”

**Cyberclone Radius**  
LEVEL: 6  
ATK: 1000

“Radius’ effect activates! When Radius is summoned, I can summon 1 Fusion, Synchro, or Xyz monster from my Extra Deck!” As Radius stabbed its swords into the ground, a summoning portal opened up. “Come forth, Starve Venom Fusion Dragon!” Zarc commanded, the jeweled dragon flying out of the portal, with a loud roar.

Starve Venom Fusion Dragon  
LEVEL: 8  
ATK: 2800

“And if you think that I’m done, you’re wrong by a freaking long shot!” Zarc said, raising his arm up. “I tribute both Cyberclone Radius and Shinigami!” Both Radius and Shinigami went into the air, both turning into purple spheres of energy. At this point, Zarc turned to the audience, saying, “Now, everyone, raise your hands up, for the main attraction! Here he is, the star of the show, Odd-Eyes Dragon!” The red dragon with heterochromatic eyes appeared on the field, with a roar.

Odd-Eyes Dragon  
LEVEL: 7  
ATK: 2500

_“Good. This is great. Now I have a solid wall of defense.”_ Zarc thought, smiling to himself. “I end my turn!”

“Zarc!” a voice called out, causing Zarc to turn around. And when he did, he saw Ray, sitting high enough to see her, and he saw that she was sitting in the skybox with her father. Zarc smiled, waving back.

“Hmpf. Focus on the damn duel.” Dyno scoffed. “My turn! DRAW!” Dyno furiously drew his card. “I activate my facedown card: Big Evolution Pill!” The facedown card flipped up, revealing itself. “By tributing Dino, I can summon any Level 5 or above monster without a tribute!”

“What the?!” Zarc went, surprised.

“And now, from my hand, I summon Jurrac Titano!” Dyno slapped the card on the face of his duel disk, and his monster appeared in a blaze of fire, and screeched loudly.

Jurrac Titano  
LEVEL: 9  
ATK: 3000 → 3200

“And now, I activate Titano’s effect! By banishing 1 Jurrac monster with 1700 or less ATK from my Graveyard, I can give Titano 1000 more ATK!

Jurrac Titano  
ATK: 3200 → 4200

“And now, Titano, attack Cyberclone: The End!” Jurrac Titano began to charge a large amount of molten lava in its mouth, as Dyno shouted: “JURASSIC METEOR!!!” The dinosaur attacked the monster head-on, reducing the monster to nothing but ash. The impact of this attack sent Zarc flying back.

**Zarc LP: 4000 → 1800  
Hand: 0**

“I activate my facedown card! The Quick-Play Spell Card, Second Attack! Now, one of my monsters can attack yours once more!” The dinosaur once again began to charge molten lava in its mouth, with Dyno shouting: “Attack Starve Venom, Titano! JURASSIC METEOR!!!” The attack hit Starve Venom dead-on, reducing the monster to ash, Starve Venom letting out a screech as it was destroyed.

“WAAAAAAAGHHHHHHHHH!” Zarc shouted, being flown back by the force of the attack.

**Zarc LP: 1800 → 400  
Hand: 0**

**“WOW! ZARC’S BEEN KNOCKED BACK WITH THE FORCE OF THE JURASSIC ERA! AND SUDDENLY, DYNO HAS TAKEN THE LEAD! LOOKS LIKE THE STREAK IS GONNA BE KEPT ALIVE AFTER ALL, IT SEEMS!”** The announcer exclaimed, riling up the crowd.

“I end my turn, now get this over with, so I can win already!” Dyno clamored.

Jurrac Titano  
ATK: 4200 → 3200

“Zarc…” Ray muttered, worried.

As Zarc struggled to get up, the crowd chanted Dyno’s name, louder and louder. As they did, Zarc bit his lip, with enough force to bleed, in frustration. The crowd, who he had struggled to entertain, had completely turned on him. It was something that he was used to, but on this volume, on this grand of a stage, was an embarrassment. It made him question why he strived to become a pro duelist…

Maybe…

Just maybe…

He should just give this up…

…

…

…

…

**_“BECOME ONE WITH US.”_ **

There was that voice again. This time, it was coming from his monster, Odd-Eyes, who was on the field. The monster looked at Zarc, his green eye glimmering with delight.

**_“BECOME ONE WITH US.”_ **

Zarc looked at Odd-Eyes as if he was going crazy, but he realized, that this was his reality. People wanted violence, but Zarc wasn’t that kind of person. But Zarc slowly realized, maybe the way he was going, wasn’t the right way…

**_“BECOME ONE WITH-“_ **

“SHUT THE HELL UP!” Zarc suddenly shouted, loud enough to silence the entire arena, as well as Odd-Eyes. Zarc slowly stood up, his head hanging down.

_“Zarc? What are you doing?”_ Ray thought, worried.

“Hey, you alright?” Dyno asked, slightly concerned.

“Yeah…” Zarc responded, his voice low and ominous. “As a matter of fact…” Zarc slowly stood up, his eyes glowing golden, and his pupils had become slits. “…I’m feeling a lot more confident, now!” Zarc’s face contorted into a wide, evil grin.

“What’s going on?!” Leo Akaba suddenly shouted.

“It’s my turn. Draw. Now, I activate my facedown card, **Cyber Multiplier.** This Trap Card can only be activated when my Life Points are below 500, and I have one or more Cyberclone monsters in my graveyard.” Zarc pulled out Cyberclone Radius, Shinigami, and Black Swordsman from the Graveyard Zone. “By banishing 3 Cyberclone monsters from my Graveyard, I can add up their ATK, and put it on one monster.” The souls of the Cyberclones appeared, phasing inside of Odd-Eyes.

Odd-Eyes Dragon  
ATK: 2500 → 9700

“9-9700?!” Dyno stuttered.

“And now…” Zarc leapt for an Action Card, which he saw out of the corner of his eye. “I activate the Action Spell Card, **Full Throttle Rush!** This allows me to attack directly with any of my monsters.” Zarc motioned forward. “Go, Odd-Eyes. Attack Dyno directly.” The heterochromic-eyed monster rushed toward the tan-skinned teen, tackling him with all his might, slamming him into the guardrail, with an audible thud.

**Zarc LP: 400**

**Dyno LP: 0 – LOSE**

The whole arena looked on in surprise, in disbelief of what they had just witnessed. Zarc, at that point, had snapped back to reality. He looked at Dyno, who was clutching his right shoulder, and rushed over to see if he was alright. As he did, Dyno held up his hand in rejection. “Stay away from me, you psycho!” Dyno struggled to get up under his own power.

“I-I’m sorry…” Zarc muttered.

“SORRY?!” Dyno shouted, startling Zarc. “You broke my collarbone, you freaking psychopath!” Medics came onto the scene immediately, taking Dyno away.

At this time, as Dyno was being carried out by the medics, the audience was beginning to applaud Zarc’s ruthlessness, and aggression. Zarc, on the other hand, was frozen in fear, and shock.

* * *

“What a truly sickening display of dueling.” Leo Akaba remarked, with both him and Ray entering the door to their house. “Honestly, how can Zarc call himself a duelist after that shameful outing?”

“Father, maybe it’s the stress that got to Zarc. I mean, his promoter was practically ordering him to do the duel. Just give him a break, okay?” Ray pleaded.

Leo sat on his chair. “Whatever the case, I do not want you interacting with that boy anymore.”

“But father!”

“No arguments. Zarc is too dangerous and reckless to hang around with you. Trust me, this is for the best.”

Ray sighed, in defeat. “I’ll be in my room.” The maroon-haired teen went upstairs, her head held down. As she opened her bedroom door, she saw a person sitting there that she didn’t expect:

“Zarc…”

The silver-haired teen turned to his friend, his eyes appeared red from crying. “Ray…”

“What are you doing here?! If my dad finds you-” Zarc cut Ray off by putting his hands on her shoulders.

“Ray. Please. I need you.” Zarc whimpered, pathetically. “Please…”

“Zarc… what are you…?”

“My monsters, my dragons really, they keep talking at me, talking about something about ‘becoming one’ with them…” Zarc began to shiver, tears sliding down his face, blubbering out words. “I just want them to stop… Make them stop…”

“Zarc…” Ray grabbed the sides of her friend’s head, before leading him to her bed, resting his head on her lap. She stroked her hand through his hair, looking at him with sorrow. “Zarc, is it okay if… I sing to you?”

Zarc meekly nodded. With his consent, she began:

_There was once a clown, who didn’t have it all,_

_And his despair for life was hidden under the guise of zeal,_

_But one day, the clown found a maestra, and they were the best of friends,_

_And nothing would separate them, but that would all soon end._

_One day, a young rebel came into town,_

_And ended up turning the maestra’s life upside-down._

_The rebel looked for his baby bird, which he had lost,_

_And soon, a rider looked for a witch, who had mysteriously gone._

_But then, the maestra had been killed by a poisonous plant,_

_And the clown went out to end his miserable life._

_“Where is my maestra? Where is my maestra?”_

_The clown killed the plant with a swing of his sword,_

_But was still gone, forevermore._

By the time that Ray finished, Zarc had calmed down to the point where he was asleep. Ray laid him on the bed, so he was comfortable. “Sweet dreams, my prince.” Ray kissed his cheek, leaving him in her room.

* * *

 

**Fan-Created Cards**

**Cyberclone Rubberman**  
Warrior/Effect  
LEVEL: 3  
EARTH  
ATK: 2000/DEF: 1000  
Effect: When this card is successfully Normal Summoned, Special Summon one Level 5 or Higher monster, from either your Deck or Hand. When this effect resolves, switch this card to Defense Mode.

**Cyberclone Shinobi**  
Warrior/Effect  
EARTH  
LEVEL: 3  
ATK: 2300/DEF: 1200  
Effect: When this monster is successfully Normal Summoned, Special Summon one “Cyberclone Shinigami” to the field.

**Cyberclone Shinigami**  
Warrior/Effect  
EARTH  
LEVEL: 3  
ATK: 2500/DEF: 700  
Effect: If an opponent’s monster attacks, make this monster’s ATK 0, and turn this into the attack target, after Damage Calculation, end the Battle Phase.

**Cyberclone Black Swordsman**  
Warrior/Effect  
EARTH  
LEVEL: 6  
ATK: 2200/DEF: 100  
Effect: This card can be Special Summoned, if you have no monsters on your field. This card can attack directly, but all damage your opponent suffers by this card this turn is halved.

**Cyber Upgrade**  
Ritual Spell Card  
Effect: This card can be used to Ritual Summon ‘Cyberclone Radius’. You must tribute cards from your hand or field with levels that equal 6 or more.

**Cyberclone: The End**  
Normal Spell Card  
This card can copy any monster on the field, and this card’s name and effects become the copied monster.

**Cyberclone Radius**  
Ritual/Warrior/Effect  
LEVEL: 6  
ATK: 1000/DEF: 100  
Effect: This can only be summoned through a Ritual Spell Card, and not by any other ways. During the Main Phase, you can either:  
•Synchro Summon one monster. If you do not have the required materials, use this card as a Tuner.  
•Special Summon one Fusion, Xyz, or Synchro monster. However, this card will not be able to attack for the rest of this turn.

**Cyber Multiplier**  
Normal Trap Card  
This card can only be activated when your LP are below 500. If you have one or more ‘Cyberclone’ monsters in your GY, add ATK, and add points to one monster on the field.

**Full Throttle Rush!**  
Action Spell Card  
Attack opponent directly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, I want to thank you all for reading this chapter! And now, I have an announcement!   
> ...  
> ...  
> I have opened a Patreon!
> 
> Now, I know, that people will be against this, and how people feel about Patreon as a begging service, but writing is my passion. And to support that passion, I would love to have something as an incentive to motivate me to write! As well as the fact that you have early access to new chapters, and exclusive access to my original stories. My patreon name is   
> Aze The Angel. I hope to see you there!

**Author's Note:**

> So, I orginally posted this story onto FF.net, but I deleted it, due to wanting to focus on my studies, and my work. But, I got the itch, and now, I feel inspired to finish this story.
> 
> Plus, FF.net has too many problems, now. ^^


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